Shoe-lace fastener.



No. 769,308. PATENTED SEPT. s, 1904,

F. E. DUNNETT.

SHOE LACE PASTENER.

APPLICATION FILED NOV.23, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

3f 112555: I Zmmutnr l? M41: 313 265mm dud/M 6W.

Ifo. 769,308.

UNITED STATES Patented SeptembrlG, 1 904,

PATENT O EIcE.

FRANCIS E. DUNNETT, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR OF ON E-HALF TO ELIAS H. SELLERS, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

SHOE-LACE FASTENEER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 769,308, dated September 6, 1904. Application filed November 23,1903. Serial No- 182,252. (No model.)

To all whom it. may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANCIS E. DUNNETT, a citizen of Great Britain, residing at Detroit, in the county of Wayne, State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shoe-Lace Fasteners; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and eX- act description of the in vention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to a shoe-lace fastener; and it consists in the construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed out particularly in the claims.

The object of the invention is to provide a fastening device for shoe-laces which is removably attached to the lace and independent of the shoe, said fastening device being elastic and adapted to hold the shoe-lace so as to main tain the fly of the shoe closed and yet allowof a free movement of the ankle, so as to overcome unduerigidity and relieve the strain and wear upon thelaces, the device being capable of employment in connection with any laced shoe and facilitates the securing of the laces after a shoe has been laced.

The above object is attained by the structure illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is an elevation of the upper portion of a shoe, showing the application of my invention. Fig. 2 is a front View in perspective, showing the fastening device in position, the shoe appearing in dotted lines. Fig. 3 is a perspective viewof the elastic fastening device and the laces, showing the manner of securing-the looped end of the laces to said device. Fig. 4. is a fragmentary view in per' spective of one end of the elastic fastener and the lace-strand passingtherethrough. Fig. 5 is an elevation of the elastic fastener, showing the retaining-roll at oneend adapted to engage the loop of the lace in a manner to allow said loop to be readily disengaged. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the elastic fastener with the ends of the lace attached to the opposite ends thereof.

Referring to thecharacters of reference, 1 designates the top of an ordinary laced shoe in which is laced in the ordinary manner the lace-strand 2. The fastener, which is adapted to hold the lace to maintain the shoe yieldingly closed, comprises an elastic strap 3, folded upon itself to form a loop l at one end, the free ends of said strap at the other end of the fastener being rolled into a cylindrical knob 5, forming a projection adapted to engage a loop of the lace.

In one-form of the application of this invention, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, it may be so employed as to obviate the necessity of tying or untying the lace each time the shoe is placed upon the foot or removed therefrom. In applying said fastener, as shown in said fig ures, one end of the lace is passed through the loop 4: of the elastic when the ends of the'lace.

are tied, as at 6, whereby the elastic fastener becomes strung upon the lace. By this arrangement after the shoe is laced there are formed at the extremities of the united laces the loops 7' forward so as to receive the loop 7, the length of said laces in the loops being such as to place a tension upon the elastic strap and the laces being crossed at the front edge of the shoe, with the knot 6 lying in its ordinary position. The tension of the elastic fastener holds the laces in place, so as to prevent the shoe from opening, yet allows of a free movement of the ankle. When it is desired to re move the shoe, the loop 7 is disengaged from the knob 5 of the elastic, when the laces are released, enabling the fly of the shoe to be opened and the shoe removed, It will be I noted that the knot 6, which unites the laces, need not be untied and that the elastic fastener remains upon the laces at all' times, so that when the shoe is again put on it is only necessary to engage the laces over the hooks 9 of the shoe in the ordinary manner, passing the elastic fastener around the rear of the shoe and engaging the loop 7 of the lace with the knob 5 thereof, obviating the necessity of tying the laces and yet holding them with such tension as to keep them perfectly in place, presenting the appearance of an ordinary laced shoe.

As shown in Fig. 6, instead of tying the ends of the laces in front of the shoe, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, the end of each laced strand may be tied to the body thereof, as shown at 10, forming the loops 11 and 12, which engage the loop L and the retainingroll 5 of the fastener, respectively, to maintain the laces in proper position. To unfasten the laces, it is only necessary to slip the loop 11 from the roll 5.

Having thus fully set forth my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a shoe-lace fastener, the combination with the ends of the lace, of an elastic fastener comprising a strip of elastic material, having a loop at one end and an engaging roll at the other, one lace end passing through said loop and the other lace end engaging said fasteningroll, said fastening device lying against the back of the shoe.

2. In a shoe-lace fastener, the combination with the looped lace ends, of an elastic strip folded upon itself to form a loop at one end through which one of the loops of the lace passes and having at the other end an engaging projection formed by rolling the ends of the elastic strip, said projection engaging the other loop of the lace.

3. In a shoe-lace fastener, the combination of the lace having its ends tied together to form in each end a loop which may extend partially around the shoe, an elastic fastener mounted at one end upon one of said loops and adapted to lie against the rear of the shoetop, the other end of said fastener having an integral projection adapted to engage the other loop.

4. In a shoe-lace fastener, the combination with the lace, of the fastener comprising a strip of elastic material folded upon itself to form a loop, and the ends of said material being rolled, forming an engaging projection, one end of the lace engaging the loop of the fastener and the other end of the lace having a loop therein adapted to engage said projection to detachabl y retain the lace in position.

In testimony whereof I sign this specification in the presence of two witnesses.

FRANCIS E. DUNNE'JTI.

Witnesses:

IE. S. WVIIEELER, I. G. HOWLETT. 

